Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
Rating: 2 stars (maybe a 1.5 even)
I actually thought about not writing a review for this, just because this book is popular, hyped up, and well-loved. It also has been recommended to me countless of times, and the mysteriousness and countless positive reviews intrigued me to no end, so I got it and I read it.
I was excited, but the first few chapters didn't hook me right away. I wasn't sure where it was going, what it was going to be about, and I couldn't really relate to the main character. I also found many insta-love moments here - wherein the protagonist falls in love with the good looking boy the moment she sees him and that's that.
By the time I got to the middle of the book, I was still left underwhelmed, like something was missing. There was no appeal, no excitement, no anything. I thought the ending was nicely done, but it wasn't enough to make me love the book, just because the rest of the story wasn't solid enough.
Overall, I felt it was a very underdeveloped story with characters I couldn't picture as 'real people' that I can relate to and empathize with. I wouldn't recommend this if you usually don't read contemporary young adult. As always, this is just my opinion. Let me know what you thought of it.
I'm relieved to see someone else who was not impressed with this book!! I normally enjoy cont YA and with all of the hype around this one - I was excited to read it. It was a disappointment for me. Definitely felt like it was missing something and I never connected.
ReplyDeleteI am glad to see that you were not too impressed with it. Considering how much it has been hyped, I am very reluctant to read it. The issues you mentioned are things that bug me too, so I will hold off on reading this until much later.
ReplyDeleteHmm, I wonder if this is how I will feel about this book! I don't usually read YA or hyped books but this one intriguged me so I have it on request at the library. I've been trying not to speculate about it too much so I don't blow my expectations out of proportion...
ReplyDeleteFrom what I can tell of the reviews, most people loved this one, but a fair number of people felt the way you did (maybe because it was overhyped?). I can understand why you didn't really take to this one... I'm pretty sure I wouldn't either. I am still sort of intrigued by this twist that people keep talking about, but I can't say this one is high on my priority list.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read this one, but I sure do know what you mean about feeling underwhelmed by a book. Especially when it has been hyped up.
ReplyDeleteI did end up loving this book but I think that has more to do with my very low expectations going in.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I did love it, I can definitely see why many people wouldn't and I completely agree with your thoughts on the romance. I think that's the weakest part of the story.
I'm glad you wrote the review anyway. It think it's important to have differing points of view. *Especially* with the popular books. I know I'm almost always the loan dissenter and it's nice to know other people feel the same way.
Karen @ For What It's Worth